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Putin claims 'there will be a response' to Crimean Bridge attacks

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Putin claims 'there will be a response' to  Crimean Bridge attacks
Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to the Governor of Irkutsk region during their meeting in Moscow on July 17, 2023. (Photo by Alexander KAZAKOV / SPUTNIK / AFP via Getty Images)

In a meeting broadcast on July 17, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin claimed that the Defense Ministry is preparing a response to the "acts of terrorism" which damaged the Crimean Bridge earlier in the day.  

Two blasts were reported by Russian media at around 3 a.m. local time, heavily damaging a section of the bridge for road traffic. Russia blamed Ukraine, but Kyiv has not claimed responsibility.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin estimated that it would take until November for the bridge to be fully restored.  

Putin also demanded during the meeting that he would receive specific proposals to strengthen the security of the bridge. The bridge was last seriously damaged due to a blast in October 2022, with repairs lasting until February 2023.

The bridge is currently closed for cars and only open for freight traffic. Russian state-controlled news agency RIA Novosti reported that by the early afternoon of July 17, a traffic jam of five kilometers had formed of vehicles leaving Russian-occupied Crimea through occupied Kherson.  

Media reports claim that Ukrainian intelligence services carried out the attack on July 17 with drones that travel over the surface of the water.

Explosions reported at Crimean Bridge, Russia blames Ukraine
Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out an attack against the Crimean Bridge, which connects the occupied peninsula with Russia’s Krasnodar Oblast, on July 17.
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Elsa Court

Audience Development Manager

Elsa Court is the audience development manager at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a news editor at the Kyiv Independent and was an intern at the Kyiv Post in 2018. She has a Master’s in Conflict Studies and Human Rights from Utrecht University. Elsa is originally from the UK.

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